It's the unwritten rule of sending money to friends and family - you're likely in for a wait before that money finalises it's transfer. While it's usually not much more than a mild inconvenience for most people, it could be asked "why isn't this faster?"

Well on Thursday, the Reserve Bank of Australia (RBA) confirmed that a new payments platform will change all of that - allowing people to transfer money between accounts - and other banks - in near real-time.

RBA Governor Dr Phillip Lowe addressed the House of Representatives Standing Committee, explaining that all a user will require to perform an "instantaneous payment" with the upcoming system will be their recipient's mobile number or email address. "The payer will no longer need to give their bank account number or their BSB; just the mobile number or the email address will do," Lowe explains. Along with the ability for users to make real-time payments, the RBA is planning to allow users to send more complete remittance information with payments, address payments in a relatively simpler way and make and receive payments outside of normal business hours.

Along with developing new infrastructure to allow for these near real-time transfers, the RBA is also looking to renovate it's existing banking infrastructure. The Reserve Bank is the main transactional banker for the Commonwealth government, and Lowe indicated that the RBA is developing software systems that will help government instiutions deliver payments to the community more effectively. "Like other financial institutions, we need to keep investing in technology so that we can provide a high level of service to our customers." Lowe said.

Lowe confirmed Thursday that the new payments platform will be ready come late 2017.